Sharon, on the other hand, was shaking and had tears streaming down her face after Christopher Ewing, founder of the Hang On To The Dream Foundation, told Stephanie that she would no longer have to worry about the cost of her skating lessons.
Stephanie, who aspires to compete in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, has been skating since the age of 7. Now 12 years old and a seventh grader at Kirn Junior High, Sharon said her granddaughter has the ability to make a serious push to compete in the Olympics.
Skating lessons aren't cheap - Stephanie's cost approximately $15,000 annually - but an anonymous family from Ann Arbor, Mich., has agreed to absorb the cost of the lessons.
While the family will cover the cost for at least a year, Ewing said they would likely absorb the cost for an "indefinite" period of time.
The story began when Stephanie and Sharon attended the "Hang On To The Dream" search July 22 at Westroads Mall in Omaha.
In hand was a copy of Stephanie's story in the June 15 edition of the Daily Nonpareil. Ewing said reading the article and talking to Stephanie "absolutely broke my heart."
Finding a way for Stephanie to continue pursuing her dream became a priority, Ewing said.
"After meeting her - she's just the sweetest kid in the world - we just really wanted to help her," he said.
In 1999, Stephanie lived with her parents, who were using drugs at the time, in the Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates. Sharon said her granddaughter endured years of neglect, including one episode where she found out Stephanie had suffered third-degree burns on her arms and legs, which later became infected.
Eventually, the court system pulled Stephanie and younger sister Ashley out of their parents' home. The girls lived in a foster home for nine months before Sharon was able to legally adopt them.
To help build Stephanie's self-esteem, Sharon had her granddaughter begin ice skating lessons. Stephanie flourished on the ice, Sharon said, and continued to take lessons even after her Chicago-area ConAgra plant closed and she transferred to the Omaha branch a little more than a year ago.
Stephanie and Sharon were treated to the pleasant surprise of a limousine outside of their apartment complex Thursday morning. Neither said they had any idea of what was going on.
The limo took the duo to Council Bluffs City Hall, where Ewing and Mayor Tom Hanafan, who presented Stephanie with a plaque and a key to the city, met them.
At 12 years of age, Hanafan believes Stephanie is the youngest person in the city's history to be awarded a key.
"It's a wonderful story," said Hanafan, who was first contacted by Ewing's foundation two weeks ago. "All that she's been through, and now she'll continue to have an opportunity to rebuild herself and her life."
Sharon's jaw dropped when she found out a donor was paying the full cost of Stephanie's ice skating lessons.
"I thought that maybe someone was going to help out with the cost, but I had no idea of this," she said through tears.
The Hang On to the Dream Foundation is a national, non-profit 501c 3 organization designed to help children achieve their dreams. The foundation was started following the success of an Emmy Award-winning kids television show of the late 1990s called "Hang On to the Dream," which was created and hosted by Ewing.
Sharon hopes that she and Stephanie can arrange a meeting with the donor family in the near future.
"Stephanie has been praying for this a lot. Now, her prayers have been answered," Sharon said.
To the donor family, Stephanie had these words: "Thank you for helping me."
For more information on the Hang On To The Dream Foundation, go to
www.hangontothedream.com.